What is asthma?
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sthma is a condition that causes breathing problems like coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath. It can be mild, moderate or severe, depending upon how often children experience symptoms.
Asthma is a chronic illness, which means it doesn’t go away after a brief period like a cold or the flu, and it can last into adulthood. Even when children go for weeks or months without having any asthma symptoms, they still have asthma, and they still need to follow their asthma action plans. Asthma happens when children’s airways (throat and lungs) become irritated and swollen, making it very hard to breathe. Asthma often starts when a child gets a cold or breathes in something that he or she is sensitive or allergic to called an asthma trigger. Asthma episodes usually start slowly and get worse over a few hours or even days. Asthma is easiest to treat in its earliest stages. That’s why it is very important to monitor asthma symptoms every day and treat symptoms early, before they become serious.
Three things happen in an asthma episode that make it hard for your child to breathe.
1. The airways become
inflamed (red and irritated).
2. Mucus increases. 3.
The muscles around the airways tighten.
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